Today Beadsaholic brings a review of the OHM Beads July 2020 Collection

Today is preview day and here on Beadsaholic I have a complete review of the new beads coming out on July 02, 2020. This release consists of two new glass beads and one silver. I really love this release and I think many of you will, too.

OHM Beads Cairn is an OHMLab project with assistant Patricia McClure (AKA The_MccTrish on Instagram). The word Cairn is Scottish Gaelic and in Scotland these are well-known as burial cairns; however, Cairns are used in many different cultures for many things and some have been standing for hundreds of years. You may ask what a Cairn is, it is a man-made stacked pile of rocks. I personally find Cairn Zen-like and maybe because of their use of the Inuits to the temples in Korea and the many other sacred places that are marked by Cairn. What does Cairn teach us to do? Stand tall, find your balance, stay grounded, be solid, leave your mark and guide others. In this bead you will find a beautiful light grey core, with clear glass and different size rocks stacked around the surface of the glass in shades of grey and plum colors. This is a standard size barrel shape glass averaging around 15 mm high x 7 mm wide and retails for €57

“Stacks of rocks, or cairns in Gaelic Scotland, have been built since prehistoric times as trail guides, burial monuments (or markers for buried food and treasures), as astronomy charts, as military defenses, or for ceremonial rites in sacred places. An old Gaelic blessing of friendship states, “I’ll put a stone on your stone.” Coastal cairns, painted white, were used to warn ships of rocky shores or travelers of dangerous cliffs. In South Korea, hikers stack stones for good luck in tribute to the Mountain Spirit.

Today, stacking stones are often used as a meditative practice. The rugged durability of stones represents the soul–or truth itself–that which is eternal, yet the carefully balanced rocks can easily topple, which represents the impermanence of life and all our temporal efforts. The act of stacking and balancing stones requires focus, patience, and profound stillness of the mind–each carefully placed stone is a prayer or thought of gratitude–a meditation on the oneness of self with the vibrations of the stones and the surrounding environment.

Our OHM CAIRN will add a subtle, carefully balanced hue of color to your bracelet, reminding you of the precious impermanence of each day, the gratitude you feel for guideposts along your journey, and the friendships you share that stack blessing upon blessing. “I’ll put a stone on your stone” and a pebble of good luck too!” ~ OHM Beads 

Of course, I went with a ZEN inspired composition.

OHM Beads Shark Bay is an OHM Australia Exclusive inspired by Shark Bay Australia which is the World Heritage site and a protected area for wildlife both on land and in sea, many of which are threatened. Sharks Bay is an area of zoological importance. If you take a look at some satellite photos of Shark Bay you will find that the colors in this bead match perfectly to the sea and land of this area. I really love how OHM has added in the texture of both the land and ocean for this area of the world. This bead is absolutely stunning and perfect for any sea life or Australian themed bracelet. This bead is barrel shape and averages around 15 mm high x 7 mm wide. I do not have a retail price for this bead yet and it won’t be available for preorder; however, I will share the price once I have it and you can purchase this bead on release day July 2, 2020.

“SHARK BAY is an amazing natural wonderland on the westernmost point of the Australian continent. The bay itself covers a massive area, dotted with countless islands and peninsulas, and teeming with hundreds of species of birds, reptiles, and different fish, including many rays and, yes, sharks. The most massive shark in the world, the whale shark, gathers in SHARK BAY during April and May full moons.

The bay is also home to 10,000 dugongs, or “sea cows,” a cousin of the manatee. Endangered species of green and loggerhead sea turtles nest on the bay’s sandy beaches. Humpback and southern right whales use the bay as a migratory staging area, and bottlenose dolphins forage for food, attracted by the world’s most abundant meadows of seagrass on the bay’s sandy floor. Due to the hot Australian climate and rapid evaporation, the water of the bay is nearly twice as salty as the surrounding ocean. Further south, some of the world’s oldest living algae formations, called stromatolites, have been rising from the water since prehistoric times.

Deep blue sea waves swirl into white foam as they spread across the sandy shore. The vibrant salty blue is flecked with shimmers that could be darting fish, bubbles from a whale, or a nearly transparent jellyfish. Is the sandy hue the seagrass floor? Or sea turtles nesting in the shoreline dunes? Your imagination can soar with the rising flocks of birds or leap with the dolphins or even cruise with graceful menace like a shark. Surely this is an OHM bead worthy of the name SHARK BAY.” ~ OHM Beads 

In this composition I went for an Ocean Theme with all OHM Beads.

I can only imagine all the wildlife that must be at Shark Bay and would love to visit one day.

OHM Beads Woot Bear Phinneas was released in April as a limited release and was designed by Steve Ferrea, shortly after the release the limited bead was sold out. With most OHMistry projects if they sell out during the initial limited release they can come into the collection at a later release with a non-limited version. I am happy to announce that in July we will see Woot Bear as part of the regular collection. Woot Bear Phinneas retails for €52.

“The Woot Bear design was born in Steve Ferrera’s Berkeley art studio in 2016 for an art show at Woot Bear Gallery in San Francisco. The original bear was a 5-inch tall solid cast resin figure painted with acrylic paints. For the show, a dozen top toy designers were asked to customize the bear. The design continues to evolve and find new iterations, this time finding a home in the jewelry and bead world with OHM Beads in Seattle, Washington. The bead designs were created by OHM who incorporated some signature swirls found in their logo.

WOOT BEAR PHINNEAS was launched as part of Project OHMistry, in April of 2020, and is now available as a regular collection item.” ~ OHM Beads

This little guy is so magical.

Overall, this is a small, but lovely release. I really love the glass in this release and am so happy that many of you who wanted a Woot Bear will now be able to get your very own.

If you would like to preorder Cairn or Woot Bear you may do so at the following links and the entire collection will be available on the OHM Beads website on July 2, 2020.

Featured Ohm Beads Retailers

(Alphabetical order – click on retailers name)

Edone – Ships Globally from Italy

Perlen – Ships Globally from Denmark

Pianeta Beads – Ships Globally from Italy

Sperky S Pribehem -Ships Globally from Czech Republic

Star Bijou – Ships Globally from Germany

Story in the Bead – ships from Czech Republic

As always, I enjoy hearing from you all and would love to read your thoughts on this release? Any must have beads? Did you get a Woot Bear in April? Do you love him? Leave me a comment below ❤

XO,

Paula